Estate Agents Do We Need Them?

[kitchensinkdrama]

Hi - Look like we might have to move house, (an unexpected baby...). Its sad as we live in a really lovely Victorian terrace across the road to a much sought-after school where my 4 year old is very happy. Still, we are running out of space here.
Had an (apparently) 15 year old estate agent round today to give me a valuation and I got to thinking about whether I could sell without an agent.
Has anyone out there ever tried this?

My feeling is that a lot of people are nervous about dealing with the seller direct and many sellers are way too personal about the sale (feel that any attempt to haggle on the price is an attempt to devalue their wonderful home/don't want to hear feedback etc).

I rent out properies without using an estate agent and it is much more profitable but a bit of a roller coaster - you wouldn't believe the number of people who love the flat and then disappear as soon as you start trying to do credit checks etc.

My advice would be to try a few estate agencies to see if you like any others better and then think about going it alone.

Hi lalalonglegs, thanks for your response.

Sounds like good advice and you are probably right. I really do feel very proud of my lovely house (I sweated blood trying to get the matthew williamson wallpaper which hangs above my fireplace, I just want to tear it down and take it with me) -- and people are moving into the area just to get into the school across the road. Still, I suppose here in north London, the market is what it is...

I will organise a few more valuations and see how I feel about other agents. Grrr.

We-e-ll, thing is, what does an agent DO that you can't, really? There are internet sites out there you can advertise your property (and who will give you advice about how to 'market' your property). Or you can set your own website up with pictures etc, then advertise the site in the local press, on a sign outside etc.

As for the emotional and personal, I was amazed at how often when we were looking to buy recently here in the UK the owner of the house was expected to show us around themselves! Or the number of times the owner trailed around the house following us and the agent!!

Until recently all my property transactions were in Oz. There, you wouldn't DREAM of having to show a potential buyer around! You as a buyer or seller would expect never to clamp eyes on your other party. The middle-man role is what you pay your agent to do!

fwiw I sold our house in Oz myself. It wasn't hard. The difficult stuff is what one should undertake anyway, whoever is selling, ie serious decluttering, immediate availability, immaculate presentation at all times. ONE (not necessarily you personally, drama!) may think: 'Of course any potential buyer would expect there to be wet towels on the bathroom floor, limescale on the shower cubicle, dirty dishes in the sink, dirty laundry on view, it's a family home' No, no no! Hire storage! Stick 30% of your clobber in it! Make the kids select half a dozen toys and put them in one box apiece. Hide the rest! Wipe the shower down every time you use it!

I didn't allow any actual knocking on the door (though we had a professionally made For Sale sign, listing the features outside) but on more than one occasion I had a phone call from someone sitting outside in their car, requesting a viewing!

Trick was to welcome them, give them a brochure with a few photos and the facts in it, give them a guided tour, pointing out the features, then telling them to go wander alone for 10 minutes or so and tell them where to find you when they were ready. I also said 'You don't need to whisper or be afraid of saying openly what you don't like, I'm not precious about this, it's a house I want to sell'. That way they realised that though I owned the house, I would be as professional as any agent. Then, in 'the chat' at the end, I'd say I was going to effectively split the profit of NOT using and agent 50/50 with them.

Not sure how you go with the legals here- it was easier in Oz, you got a contract prepared which they signed. Ask a solicitor how to 'nail' a buyer.

Anyway, took me 10 days from advert to exchange

I think you have to pretend to be the estate agent when people come around, ie do not let on this is your house and be utterly business like (although that might give the game away lol).
If you use an online estate agent isold.com/co.uk or something similar I bet you'd do just as well as the local agents, I hope their days are numbered.

Though if you come clean that you are the owner, you have the advantage of being able to say you'll be going halves on the non-agent 'profit'. Everyone likes a bargain! AND you get to say you won't be playing silly buggers, playing one set of people off against another.

Thats true.

The internet is an excellent tool - the target market for your property is obviously a young family, and they will browse the internet looking for a property. But an estate agent isn't just about advertising. A lot of buyers get nervous dealing with private sellers because they like to have a bricks n' mortar estate agent with an established reputation that they can visit and direct questions to, or complain to if things drag on or go wrong. People also get very embarrassed when it comes to money, and wouldn't feel comfortable haggling with the owner. This alone can be enough to put people off.

Another thing to consider is that emotions run high during property purchases and an estate agent can act as a mediator between buyer and seller - at such a stressful time, it only takes one wrong remark to cause a falling out and risk the whole sale falling though. You're probably very nice, but the people who buy the house could be absolute nightmares and could end up calling you ten times a day with queries and demands, so personally I'd rather an agent was getting their calls and not me.

Of course you may feel that the above points won't apply to your own situation, in which case all you can do is try the private route - if it doesn't work, you've always got the agents to fall back on. I'd start with flyers/brochures handed out to mums at the school gate, which directly targets your market and saves you signing up to expensive internet marketing in the beginning.

If you think you can do it yourself then try this Sarah Beeny's house selling site

Or this was announced yesterday

Tesco version

I will certainly be doing it this way, but then I have been a letting agent for 10 years and have an insider knowledge. I am not sure I could do it without, as it can be stressful/complicated.

Good luck!

Hi All,

Thanks for your responses, they are very much appreciated.

I heard about the Tesco thing after starting the thread and on balance, I do think this might be the way forward? Will investigate further -- and of course, if we decide to go ahead with the sale any time soon, will let you know how things went.

As I said on another thread, the accusation in The Times and subsequent Times Online forum that Mumsnetters are spiteful, unsupportive cyberbullies (who us?) is proven wrong yet again.

Speak later comrades! x

I wish there was some way of saying to a road (that I want to buy in) look if you are going to sell, sell it to me first and don't bother with the estate agent. But how?

Hi Jollydiane,

I had fantasies about perhaps getting a for sale sign printed up and put outside my house with my mobile number n it (about £100).

The first post I got after starting this thread made me think again though -- perhaps people need some sort of go-between? Perhaps my neighbours and local friends, many of whom have said how much they love our house/are pushed for space, want to be in the school catchment etc etc would be uncomfortable speaking directly to us?

Not sure now.

Jollydiane - just put a note to that effect through the door of all the houses you like with your mobile number on. What have you got to lose?!
KSD - I sold my last house myself - 40 quid for an ad in the local paper saved me 2 grand! As long as you have thick skin and can detach yourself from the situation emotionally it can work. If it hasn't worked after a couple of weeks you can always think again. Next step to use a non-commission agent who just charges a flat fee - about 300 - then it goes on right move and you get a sign outside.

Jackstini, thanks for the tip, not a bad idea at all re the non commission agent. Might be worth a try if we do decide to sell.

An estate agent can speak to both sets of solicitors. A seller can only speak to their own solicitor otherwise they will rack up solicitors bills for their buyer. There is often a problem with one solicitor not getting on with it or forgetting that the other side is waiting for something from them, a call from the estate agent can often get things moving again.

One in three sales falls through, I believe that when not using an estate agent this figure would be a lot higher. It can be an extremely stressful time with poor communication, miunderstandings and personal feelings running high. An estate agent would often hold a sale together speaking to agents up and down a chain and sorting out problems, negotiating moving dates etc when nobody wants to give way.

And yes, I did used to be an estate agent, but I have absolutely nothing to gain from saying this now. There are obviously a lot of bad agents out there, but there are equally a lot of good, helpful ones as well.

Don't solicitors handle house sales in Scotland ? It's about time there was some regulation or professional qualification to rid the industry of the clowns.
Biggest purchase anyone ever makes and it's usually handled by a 20 year old who used to work for the car phone warehouse.

I would say in a booming market a house virtually sells itself but in a difficult one an agent helps.

Hi Helenn,
Thanks for your post. To clarify, I wasn't talking about selling without a solicitor, in fact I think both buyer and seller should use one, it's just the agents themselves I am considering trying to do without. Will sleep on it...x

Hi Kitchensink - you mis-understand me. Both sides would not really be able to buy/sell without a solicitor (technically you could if you didn't need a mortgage but not many would be able to) this isn't what I meant.

What I mean is that you as the seller are not able to speak to the buyer's solicitor. This is because otherwise you would be running up a solicitors bill for your buyer that he hasn't agreed to. So, if there was a problem you would have to deal solely through your solicitor.

If there is a hold up an estate agent can speak to both sides' solicitor and see what the problem is and liaise between the two. Your solicitor could be the one causing the problems (ie be on holiday and the file be hidden on the desk doing nothing for two weeks), or the other sides' solicitor could be being very slow. An estate agent can help to keep a sale moving, surprising how many buyers pull out because their situation changes or they see something they prefer, so it is good to get the sale through as quickly as possible.

Hi Helenn,

Thank you for clarifying. Will keep you all posted...

Hi Kitchensinkdrama

I know I'm about 4 weeks late on this post but I'm losing my patience with this house hunting lark (we were gazumpt last week ) and thought it might be worth asking where abouts in North London you are? I am looking in various places around North London within the catchment area of decent primary schools and have been thinking of trying to buy privately. Could be you're in the right area for me!